Saskatchewan sending ventilators to help COVID relief in India

Saskatchewan is pitching in to help India deal with COVID-19.

On Monday, the provincial government announced it’s sending 100 ventilators to India, which has the world’s highest active COVID caseload.

“Saskatchewan has a close and growing friendship with India, so it is incumbent on us to assist them where we can during this challenging time in their country,” Premier Scott Moe said in a media release.

“With an excess supply of ventilators in Saskatchewan, we are well-positioned to provide this humanitarian support to India during a time of great need.”

Saskatchewan currently has more than 700 critical-care, subacute and non-invasive ventilators. The 100 ventilators going to India comprise 30 critical-care and 70 subacute ventilators.

“The Government of Saskatchewan will work with Saskatchewan’s trade officials and the Indian Embassy in Canada to ship the ventilators to India in a timely and secure manner,” the government said in its release. “Saskatchewan will continue to work with other provincial partners to look at further opportunities to support India.”

India reported nearly 370,000 new COVID cases and more than 3,400 deaths Monday. The country’s health ministry has confirmed 19.9 million cases and more than 218,000 deaths since the start of the pandemic.

The country also has had difficulty maintaining oxygen supplies due to high demand.